ARTICLES ABOUT FRONT OFFICE BY DATE - PAGE 4

The Sports Xchange MLB Team Report - Seattle Mariners - INSIDE PITCH The natives, as they say, are getting restless in Seattle. A 3-10 stretch put the Mariners eight games under .500 despite a 7-1 win over San Diego on Thursday. Heading into the weekend series in Minnesota, the seat under GM Jack Zduriencik is getting hotter and manager Eric Wedge is finally starting to feel some heat from the public. What was supposed to be the next step toward contention has only turned into an all-too-familiar season, and the two men atop the baseball team have a lot of questions to be answered.

The Sports Xchange Report: Raptors close to hiring Ujiri The Toronto Raptors are closer to hiring Masai Ujiri to head their front office. The Raptors have been in talks with the Denver Nuggets general manager and the two sides were in negotiations, Yahoo! Sports reported. Ujiri was recently named the NBA's Executive of the Year after the Nuggets won 57 games and received the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. The Raptors earlier this week moved executive Bryan Colangelo out of basketball operations and into a corporate position with the team.

The Sports Xchange Raptors interested in Nuggets GM Ujiri Denver Nuggets general manager Masai Ujiri is the top candidate to take over the Toronto Raptors front office, according to CBS Sports. Ujiri, the NBA executive of the year, helped put together a Nuggets squad that won 57 games and got the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Ujiri turned down the Philadelphia 76ers offer to be their GM last year. The Raptors were turned down last week by Phil Jackson.

In the latest in a series of front office moves, the Chicago Bears have promoted Mark Sadowski to senior national scout. The St. Rita graduate has been with the organization since 2005 and has worked since then as a Southeast area scout. Prior to joining the Bears, he worked for the New Orleans Saints from 1998 to 2005. “Mark has been essential in the scouting and the evaluation of player talent since joining the Bears,” general manager Phil Emery said in a statement released by the club.

The Sports Xchange Jackson not likely to run Raptors front office Phil Jackson's chances of becoming the Toronto Raptors' president of basketball operations are "remote," according to Sportsnet.ca. Jackson, winner 11 NBA championships as a coach, has ties to MLSE head Tim Leiweke, which run the Raptors. Jackson coached the Los Angeles Lakers when Leiweke headed AEG, which operates the Staples Center. Jackson met with MLSE last week. Raptors general manager Bryan Colangelo may resign this week.

The Sports Xchange EditorsNote: fixes typo in headline Broncos hire Heckert to front-office job Former Cleveland Browns general manager Tom Heckert was hired as the Denver Broncos' director of pro personnel, the NFL Network reported Monday. Heckert takes over from Keith Kidd, who did not have his contract renewed by the Broncos. Heckert served as general manager of the Philadelphia Eagles from 2006-2009 before being hired in the same role by the Browns in 2010. Heckert was relieved of his duties with the Browns at the end of last season.

More change is afoot in the Chicago Bears' front office. League sources say the latest scout to leave is Ted Monago, who was allowed to depart for a promotion as national scout of the St. Louis Rams. A year ago, Monago was promoted by the Bears to the position of executive scout and named to oversee the critical Southeast conference. Monago is a longtime Bears employee who has been responsible for different regions during his time with the team. The Bears drafted two players from Monago's conference this year in second-round pick Jon Bostic and sixth-round pick Cornelius Washington.

The Sports Xchange Jaguars part ways with two in front office The Jacksonville Jaguars have parted ways with director of player personnel Terry McDonough and director of pro personnel Louis Clark, ProFootballTalk.com reported Monday. It is not certain whether there will be further changes to the Jaguars front office under new general manager Dave Caldwell. McDonough had been the Jags director of player personnel since January 2009. Clark had been director of pro personnel since December 2011.

Phil Jackson continues to consider his next move, and it may extend beyond finding a coaching gig. Could a front-office job be in his future? "I've had some talks with people, and there are some interesting situations that are presenting themselves, but I really haven't made up my mind yet what I'm going to do," Jackson told the San Francisco Chronicle. "None of it involves coaching. ... There are three or four teams that have been interested. " He elaborated that he has interest in having influence in hiring a coaching staff and creating a culture.